Register Now

In order to be able to post messages on the The Planted Tank Forum forums, you must first register.
Please enter your desired user name, your email address and other required details in the form below.

User Name:

Password

Please enter a password for your user account. Note that passwords are case-sensitive.

Password:

Confirm Password:

Email Address

Please enter a valid email address for yourself.

Email Address:

OR

Log-in

User Name

Password

Remember Me?

Human Verification

In order to verify that you are a human and not a spam bot, please enter the answer into the following box below based on the instructions contained in the graphic.

Would a Betta really be ok in a community tank like this? My girlfriend LOVES them but from what Ive read they will tear up everything in the tank. Id love to be able to throw 1 or 2 bettas in there but I dont want them to mess with my gourmami's and especially the angels.

Bettas and gourami's don't mix.

I have had a male Betta in a 20g long with guppies. I gave the tank away. I was told that when he died the Betta they replaced him with ate all of the guppies. I have found that the non-aggressive Bettas will not look at you when you stare them down in the cup.

Would a Betta really be ok in a community tank like this? My girlfriend LOVES them but from what Ive read they will tear up everything in the tank. Id love to be able to throw 1 or 2 bettas in there but I dont want them to mess with my gourmami's and especially the angels.

Depends on the betta. I've had a male who let my endler guppies chase him around and never did anything about it, he was a very very chill betta. Where my other male, if it moves its food, this included small snails so he's housed with a larger snail he can not eat

I think that a Betta would do the trick. They love to snatch anything up that will fit in their mouth. I got one and almost all my fry are gone. I must've had a couple dozen. Even my eel wouldn't eat them.

Would a Betta really be ok in a community tank like this? My girlfriend LOVES them but from what Ive read they will tear up everything in the tank. Id love to be able to throw 1 or 2 bettas in there but I dont want them to mess with my gourmami's and especially the angels.

01-21-2013 07:58 PM

dthb4438

I think that a Betta would do the trick. They love to snatch anything up that will fit in their mouth. I got one and almost all my fry are gone. I must've had a couple dozen. Even my eel wouldn't eat them.

01-21-2013 07:50 PM

unicknn

Its a 45g tank still in the planning stages. Ive planned to get a few different versions of tetras(neons, cardinals, longfin zebra danios ect.)

I hadnt thought to just get males but I think thats what Ill do. Easiest way to prevent babies is an all male school. Thanks for the info yall!

01-21-2013 07:22 PM

Betta132

I suggest a few zebra danios. They're fast enough to pick off all but the really speedy fry, and I've never had them do more than occasionally dart at a guppy, they don't bite fins. You'll still get a baby guppy or two that survive to adulthood now and then, but it won't be a problem, and you can always trade them to a LFS.

As said, male guppies only are a good selection. Most fish stores sell the male and females separate, so it's easy to buy only males. Besides, the males are the ones with all the fancy color and tails, the females tend to be plain looking most of the time.

True, but I've seen splendid color on some females. Even the ones I have have been coloring up over generations. Not a lot of solid strains being traded locally, afaik.

01-21-2013 07:07 PM

ronnie6989

Guppies

I have been breeding guppies for over 30 years for fun. You do get alot of fish, but pick the nice ones u like and give the other ones away when they get bigger. I bring mine back to the pet store and trade for supplies. I donot take it to a level of perfection, just fun..... Live plants and guppies are the way to go. I would not mix guppies with other fish except for cat fish. Other fish like tetras would pick on them and chew there tails. Just my opinion on guppies.

Ronnie

01-21-2013 06:49 PM

GeToChKn

As said, male guppies only are a good selection. Most fish stores sell the male and females separate, so it's easy to buy only males. Besides, the males are the ones with all the fancy color and tails, the females tend to be plain looking most of the time.

01-21-2013 06:30 PM

LB79

What size is the tank? What all are you planning to put in there? How much cover (wood, rocks, plants) do you plan to have? The answers to these questions will provide an answer for the first question.

Angelfish will actively hunt and eat guppy fry. They are specialized small fish hunters. But as they get big, the menu may end up including male guppies. Of course, if you raise them from a small size with the guppies, they'll be more apt to see them as tankmates and not food. Gouramis are more of the micropredator: small aquatic invertebrates for the most part. Dwarf cichlids of the Apistogramma genus are also specialized for hunting fry, but these never venture far off the bottom of the tank. I think your best bet is a school of mid-sized upper-area dwellers such as black neon tetras, penguin tetras, gold tetras, zebra danios and related fishes, golden killifish, or something else along those lines.

If it were me, I'd take the chance with a few angels.

01-21-2013 06:26 PM

trapperwolves

Why not just buy all males? My daughter has an all male guppy tank and I must say it looks quite beautiful. The males seem to get along just fine with each other and thier color variations are quite stunning.

01-21-2013 06:12 PM

unicknn

Preditor for fry control?

Im planning out my planted tank and am now looking at my fish selection. Problem is my girlfriend wants guppies.... From what Ive read these can be a huge pain in the ass since they breed so much. What options are there for preditors that wont mess with the full grown fish?

I like Leopard Ctenopoma but I think they will get too big and eat the adult fish. Im planning on getting a couple anglefish and a few dwarf gourami's as well would they eat fry?